6. INVENTORIES

Our inventory consists of the precious metals that the Company has physically received, and inventory held by third-parties, which, at the Company's option, it may or may not receive. The following table summarizes the components of our inventory (in thousands):

Inventory Held for Sale. Inventory held for sale represents precious metals, excluding commemorative coin inventory, that have been received by the Company and are not subject to repurchase by or consignment arrangements with third parties, borrowed precious metals, or product financing arrangements. As of December 31, 2023 and June 30, 2023, inventory held for sale totaled $343.5 million and $437.7 million, respectively.

Repurchase Arrangements with Customers. The Company enters into arrangements with certain customers under which A-Mark sells and then purchases precious metals from the customer which are subject to repurchase by the customer at the fair value of the product on the repurchase date. These initial transactions with the customer do not qualify as sales and are excluded from revenue. Under these arrangements, the Company, which holds legal title to the metals, earns financing income until the time the arrangement is terminated, or the material is repurchased by the customer. In the event of a repurchase by the customer, the Company records a sale.

These arrangements are typically terminable by either party upon 14 days' notice. Upon termination, the customer’s rights to repurchase any remaining inventory is forfeited. As of December 31, 2023 and June 30, 2023, included within inventories is $220.4 million and $181.8 million, respectively, of precious metals products subject to repurchase arrangements with customers.

Consignment Arrangements with Customers. The Company periodically loans metals to customers on a short-term consignment basis. Inventory loaned under consignment arrangements to customers as of December 31, 2023 and June 30, 2023 totaled $2.9 million and $3.8 million, respectively. Such transactions are recorded as sales and are removed from the Company's inventory at the time the customer elects to price and purchase the precious metals.

Commemorative Coins. Our commemorative coin inventory, including its premium component, is held at the lower of cost or net realizable value, because the value of commemorative coins is influenced more by supply and demand determinants than on the underlying spot price of the precious metal content of the commemorative coins. The value of commemorative coins is not subject to the same level of volatility as bullion coins because our commemorative coins typically carry a substantially higher premium over the spot metal price than bullion coins. Our commemorative coins are not hedged and totaled $0.7 million and $0.9 million as of December 31, 2023 and June 30, 2023, respectively.

Borrowed Precious Metals. Borrowed precious metals inventory include: (i) metals held by suppliers as collateral on advanced pool metals, (ii) metals due to suppliers for the use of their consigned inventory, (iii) unallocated metal positions held by customers in the Company’s inventory, and (iv) shortages in unallocated metal positions held by the Company in the supplier’s inventory. Unallocated or pool metal represents an unsegregated inventory position that is due on demand, in a specified physical form, based on the total ounces of metal held in the position. Amounts due under these arrangements require delivery either in the form of precious metals or cash. The Company's inventory included borrowed precious metals with market values totaling $24.2 million and $21.6 million as of December 31, 2023 and June 30, 2023, respectively, with a corresponding offsetting obligation reflected as liabilities on borrowed metals on the condensed consolidated balance sheets.

Product Financing Arrangements. This inventory represents amounts held as security by lenders for obligations under product financing arrangements. The Company enters into a product financing agreement for the transfer and subsequent re-acquisition of gold and silver at an agreed-upon price based on the spot price with a third-party finance company. This inventory is restricted and is held at a custodial storage facility in exchange for a financing fee, paid to the third-party finance company. During the term of the financing, the third-party finance company holds the inventory as collateral, and both parties intend for the inventory to be returned to the Company at an agreed-upon price based on the spot price on the finance arrangement repurchase date. These transactions do not qualify as sales and have been accounted for as financing arrangements in accordance with ASC 470-40 Product Financing Arrangements. The obligation is stated at the amount required to repurchase the outstanding inventory. Both the product financing arrangements and the underlying inventory are carried at fair value, with changes in fair value included in cost of sales in the condensed consolidated statements of income. Such obligations totaled $518.6 million and $335.8 million as of December 31, 2023 and June 30, 2023, respectively.

The Company mitigates market risk of its physical inventory and open commitments through commodity hedge transactions. (See Note 12.) As of December 31, 2023 and June 30, 2023, the unrealized gains or losses resulting from the difference between market value and cost of physical inventory were gains of $30.2 million and losses of $4.6 million, respectively.

Premium Component of Inventory

The premium component, at market value, included in the inventory as of December 31, 2023 and June 30, 2023 totaled $34.8 million and $29.4 million, respectively.